Completed Stairs

This blog has been neglected; we've been busy.  Family life, has been kicking along, kids are deep into whatever kids do when days upon days of academics get cancelled due to mounds upon mounds of snow, I have completed the stair project with quite happy results, a vacation happened, because we needed a break from what the kids were doing when the snow came down, and now here we are. 

It's also full fledged into the season of Lent for these baby Catholics, and as a result, design was one of the first items on my list to purge for forty days in getting myself mentally and spiritually ready for the Easter celebration. (for those of you really interested in this last statement, my thoughts along these lines are hanging out at the other "secret but not so secret anymore," blog.  Go here, if you are interested.. www.thefullnessblog.blogspot.com).  Anyway, because I have taken a physical break from hand tools and power saws, doesn't mean I can't give a quick photo update for phase three, and any other fun happenings.

The original plan called for true to touch wall board under the board and batten along the steps.  However in this phase of stair remodeling, I had about reached my limit with mess and dust and I found myself overwhelmed as I stood in the wall coverings section of Lowes.  It was decided (along with the yes, yes's!! from the husband), that painting the drywall with a glossy white paint and establishing a mock wooden wall would be just fine for this weary DIYer.   The main criteria was that it had to be able to withstand the occasional pizza sauced hand. (I'm a cheap gal when it comes to the paper products isle), which we thought it could. 

We saved our sanity and splurged our wallets a bit to have a pro come in and install the hardwood in the hallway.  After sitting there night after night, trying to strategize how one installs wood floors without completely botching the job, it dawned on me:  You call a pro and enjoy your evenings.  Totally worth every penny. 

Here's the progress pictures

Not the pro, but the one who tolerates numbers and measuring way more than I do.  Which is why the trim is straight.

First coats of primer

Board and Batten

Target Café Rods turned Fake Out Stair Rods

Wood Floor... A little reward every time I go upstairs

 

 

 

                           

And for a comparison from beginning to end.  I think I can confidently claim that project staircase has been a success. 

AND WHEN ALL THE PROJECTS WERE COMPLETED, THE BOYS SAID....

Exactly how I felt, boys.  Exactly.

After my Lenten fast, I would like to add a frame wall to the stairway.  I'm collecting images in my head right now that would make me smile every time I have to run upstairs to grab someone's missing socks.  Under that criteria, there will probably be a lot of vacation scenes and a few Jesus pictures.  Because if I'm not leaning towards smiling, I should probably be reminded to pray!



Runner Runner

Phase 2.5 of staircase is complete. Enter the Dash and Albert Tortola Ticking Runner Rug.  A little bit crazy, and a whole lot of dirt hiding.  Perfect for this family. 

Lessons Learned from Install:

Contrary to other blog sites, a pneumatic staple gun (I didn't know what they were either until Kevin told me we had one).. is better than an electrical stapler.  It goes in deeper and hides better.  Basically, use an air compressor.  Compressed air is way better than electricity.

 

If you are going to attempt to a striped rug install where everything has to be lined up and staples are hidden well enough, make sure you are friends with your spouse.  It will come in handy in the stressful moments

 

Be prepared to smile every time you turn the corner and are surprised that your arch nemesis, stair carpeting, has been replaced by a case of the lovey stripes.  Literally, it's a whole case full of awesome.



Stairway to Heaven

I have dreamt for years about the day when I could rip away the carpet from my stairs and replace the Stairway of a thousand nasty stains with a gorgeous stairway to the upstairs heaven.  That day happened a few weeks ago.  We had been in talks for a while.  I actually surprised myself with how patient I was from the time of the talks to the time of action.  Usually I am one week or less girl.  I like to think it and then act.  Maybe my older and wiser age of 31 is ushering in a more peaceful DIYer that can stop and plan out all angles (cost and all) before plugging in a saw or two.  If only Kevin would know that my brain inwardly is moving a thousand times faster than my body.. he could appreciate the "delay" in projects!

This redo job was going to have to be split up into at least three phases.  Phase one consisted of removal of the old gross stuff... cutting of the new treads and risers, creating my own personal tool to help get the job done better, of which I copied off of another crazy homeowners blog, and sanding, staining, and polying  those steps so the kids could once again walk to bed without danger of falling through the basement ceiling. 

Phase two would include install of our new hip striped runner rug from Dash and Albert, and installing new wood floor on the upstairs hallway (carpet got ripped out due to a multi year ago entire paint can spill). 

Phase three, if I was still alive, if Kevin was still on board, and if I hadn't cut off any limbs from my previous dates with every saw in the garage, was to install wall board, or board and batton moulding alongside the stairway on my huge blank two story wall, currently being filled up by sticky hand prints and the occasional booger slide on the way to bed. 

We are now about to enter Phase two.  The rug is here, but the wood floor is not.  And everything depends on something else. Phase one was largely done while Kevin was out of town in trial for a few days.  I enjoy having late nights and something to do beside making a thousand peanut butter and jelly meals and feeling lonely after 7:30pm.  I thrive on being a bit crazy, sleep deprived, and under a time crunch.  I blame my genes for that.  

This project I mastered a new tool: the Router.  To which I am now a huge fan.  The Table saw, chop saw, and a hand sander were also in the mix.  I've decided though, that I am in desperate need of a few more tools for the garage... there is always something to make the job easier, of that, I am sure. 

Here are some pictures of the progress.  After the rug goes up, I may just take a few naps on my steps to really appreciate the hard work, and the lack of gross vacuuming that will need to commence.  The sheer amount of dirt hiding under that carpet was enough to make my impatient (old) self jump up and remove the rest of the carpet from the rest of the house.  But then I remembered I was calm, and patient.  And I decided to make my brain focus on one destroyed situation at a time.  It makes for a better marriage and a better budget. 

The beginning.. and a cute little boy

This is what 25 year old padding looks like.

Brown pile of sand like substance hiding under every stair. 

Better

My version of "home" school.

Routing while my 5 year old shovels.  Isn't that what normal families do?

I was so impressed by my tool that I am willing to put up this horrible picture of myself, just to show it off. (This is what happens when Kevin goes out of town). 

 





Multiple cuts, sanding, tweaks, staining, and nails later.. this is the mostly finished product

Kevin came home and helped me finish with the final decorative trim

Phase 1: Complete. 

 

 Hopefully Phase II can come quickly.  Bring on the cute new runner that even has Kevin smiling!



While the Cat is Away....

This past weekend Kevin had to be out of town for most of Friday and Saturday.  I decided it was either stock up on wine or create a project for myself to survive.  Once I saw the extra Masonite board and spare trim in the garage, combined with a new stricter grocery budget, I knew a project was the way to go.   The victim, was my fireplace.  It often is.  We have a love hate relationship, mainly because some days I love it, and on others I hate it and want it to change.  So I solved a much needed problem area... the drywall above the mantel.  It wasn't special enough.  It didn't seem a worthy backdrop for my Martha Stewart antique gold glazed mirror and ever changing seasonal wreaths.  Enter table saw, chop saw, construction adhesive, a little math, and a lot of paint. 

This is what we had before:

 

Then this happened...

 

i

Yes I did have my son take my picture while Table Sawing

 

And also a little of this:

My feet were fine Dad

 

So we ended up with phase one:

Wall board with primed trim...

 

Then priming stage:

 

More final paint

 

And then finishing up with all of the décor.  So much more Established looking.  A little less neighborhood standard and a little more: John Adams Historic.  Lovely.

 

 The details are lovely in person, and the white brightens up the whole room.  Which is appropriate considering outside it is now cold and gray. 

 

 

So that's what happens in this house when the big guy is gone for a few days.  Any project that doesn't cost a lot is a great project for me.. especially one that comes in at exactly zero dollars spent.  Except if you count the bottle of wine on night two.  But we can't blame everything on the fireplace, it's just not fair to the kids. 

 



Going Public. Again.

I have a secret.  A secret blog, that is.  And it's not so secret after all... it's a public blog.  I just haven't exposed it here.  Because it's a Catholic blog, and it's personal, and I am incredibly leery about sharing it.  But apparently it's been found, I allowed it to be seen on my profile, and now you have been tracked:).  This blog began as my way to remember our story, and now it is my deepest hope that it will be used to make a bridge between varying Christian communities.  I long for Unity, and although I understand that disagreements will arise, it is my prayer that they are discussed with accuracy, not with misunderstandings and unfounded misconceptions.  I hope to dispel some misconceptions with my thoughts. 

Even now, as I am about to post a link, I am nervous.  It's a look into my soul, my journey, and my beliefs.  You can get pretty beat up in today's world for sharing any one of those things.  It's much like walking into a dinner party and asking each guest their political leanings.  We American's frown upon such things, because they are by very nature, personal.  And, even Christians, in a large part, can fall into the belief that my thoughts are mine, and yours are yours, and arguments among believers should be avoided at all cost.  Let the things of highest importance be agreed upon, and the lesser ideas, be left at the door. 

I believe to some extent in that thinking.  Yet I also believe that some things that many might consider "lesser," are in reality the most important issues in life.  And if the Lord has for some reason given me this gift of his Church, I should not be terrified to share it.  I feel the joy of Phillip when he exclaimed, "We have found the one about whom Moses wrote in the law, and also the prophets, Jesus, son of Joseph, from Nazareth!"  I want to share how very present he allows himself to become, and to be known, within the Church.  I want to share about his body in the Eucharist, his family of the saints, and the Fathers vast love, for me, and for the world.  I want to explain how the lesser ideas became important, because they illuminated Jesus in a way I had never known him before.

So I say this, if you desire; come, taste, and see that the Lord is Good within his Church.  And read the blog.  If you are looking for pictures, stay here.  They will still be updated.  But if you are looking for a testimony of his Goodness... then follow me, Here:
www.thefullnessblog.com
Start at the beginning, it's a very good place, to start.

Picture Review

There has been a lot going on here in the last couple of months that I have forgotten to write about.  I've redone a few rooms, scraped a large ceiling, spent some time with my favorite electrical twins: the table and the chop saw, Callie started first grade, and became a master soccer star, the boys started preschool, Harry feels like he won the lottery every Mon, Wed, and Friday when he gets every toy to himself; I discovered paying for blond highlights is completely worth every penny, we took a last minute Chicago trip with my parents,  and now we are high into birthday season.  Really, I'm impressed by that paragraph. 
Here are some photo highlights:

Chicago

The Shedd

Architecture River Cruise

The Bean

Sacrificial Love

 

First day of First Grade

First day of the last year of Preschool

Discussing their plan of attack for the class.  Stick together and wear similar clothes.  Its easy to remember, and to launder.

 

Harry was first with a low key neighborhood with bonus Grandparents party.  He screamed until he realized the icing on the cupcake was also, pure sugar, his current core food group, and he went wild for play trucks, Thomas Trains, and some much needed bath toys.  Apparently, it's considered gross to still use your sisters bath toys from when she was a baby; seven years ago.  The toys must have been cool, because for a few good weeks, his older siblings were reverting to toddler brains and fighting the smallest one in the bunch for a chance to push Thomas down the track.   Ahh sibling love. 

You didn't tell me this was SUGAR!

This IS my life, People.  One picture can explain so, so much

Ever exciting Grandma and Grandpa

 

Three families that stick together no matter what. 

Faithful Neighbors: Fran and Ed

The, "I will fight you for this" face

The "Dude, Who took my Toy?" look

We went all out for the boys, who were next.  It was their first official party where we handed out invitations to the entire preschool class, rented a bounce house, and had a Grandpa Bob turned Incredible Hulk as a pie throwing victim.  I even allowed my Mom to bring her darts for a game.  Safety was not, actually first, at this party!

Harry just spotted sugar. 

Our Bat Cave.  Complete with optional capes, masks, and glow sticks.  To fight bad guys; obviously

I require this picture Every Year.  I do not care how big and ridiculous this will be.  It is my crowning achievement.

Beautiful Grandma and Callie... but check Jack in the back

The depth of his love for these boys...

Due to the boys incredible amounts of toys and fun that were had last Saturday, I now find myself having to continually promise Callie that a really cool party for her will follow.  We have booked Sky Zone, as I have promised Kevin I will not make the party about me and my love for trampolines.  We are currently on a secret mission to find out the selected friend's parents first and last names so that invitations can be sent to their home addresses.  It's against school policy to hand out at school.. so this operation is going to be long, and broad.  And I laugh when I keep having to remind Callie that a "guess" at the spelling of the last name in no way helps me in my whitepages.com search.  

I will update later from Callie's party.. if I can resist the trampolines long enough to act like an adult.  Good thing responsible Kevin will also be helping.  A room full of trampolines is equal to walking into Banana Republic with a boat load of reward points and a 50% off sale.  What normal person could resist that, anyway? 

So that has been our review in pictures.  This house is full of exciting and crazy all day, every day.  But the crazy is my normal, and my happy, and I am learning to be grateful for it everyday.